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A normal girl living her biggest, messiest dreams.

Get to know me

As seen on

These are my unfiltered adventures, musings and stories.
I talk about birds, coffee and overcoming personal fears too much.

60
ish countries
7
continents
10
odd years
Find me on or or I'll email you!

My recent adventures

The what-ifs and might-have-beens: on choosing the right path

Spoiler alert – there’s no such thing as the “right” way

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20 wildlife photos that will transport you around the world

Show me the penguins!

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black lives matter

The uprising we could all see coming – BLACK LIVES MATTER

“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter” MLK Jr.

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More adventures from the blog

My favorite stories

All the mean, nasty and godawful hateful things people say to me online

Guys, why do people troll on the internet? Why are blogger hate comments ...
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Solo and single in the most romantic place in the world

How glossy and polished is the travel industry today? Well, I suppose it's ...
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A broken robot: the face of a burnout

My whole life I’ve always been told that my face reads like an ...
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More inspirational stories

Where I screwed up big time

That one time I crashed a scooter in Bali

A week ago I found myself upside down in a ditch full of ...
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Getting Naked in Istanbul

**Warning this post borders on the TMI, but I thought it was too ...
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This might be my funniest story of all time

Guys, the funniest thing happened to me the other day. Now, I know I ...
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More confessions
World Map
Roads through Iceland
Iceland
New Zealand Road Trip Part 1
New Zealand Road Trip Part 2
Australia
Spain
Canada
Finland

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youngadventuress

American in New Zealand. Cynical but kind. Nature frother & #birdnerd. Friend of kākāpō and the girl with the whales 🐳 it’s all on my blog ⬇️

Liz Carlson☀️Young Adventuress
Every day for years and years, I would roll over i Every day for years and years, I would roll over in my bed in Wanaka, open the curtains and wake up to this view, but always alone ❤️ seeing my favorite mountains, watching the ever changing surface of the lake, made my heart sing. I loved it so much, and I still do. But as I would reach across the bed, preparing to get up and face the day, a little part of me felt deeply, tremendously sad that my hands only found empty sheets. Would I ever wake up here with someone who loves me? Would I ever be able to share this view with someone? Would I ever reach over and find my partner? Sighing, utterly resigned with my solitude, I would get up and carry on, always alone. . It was only when I had truly embraced my fate of solitude that @giuliosturla, and old friend came back into my life. Now, exactly one year later, I’ve exchanged my beloved mountain views in Wanaka to a different mountain view on the Banks Peninsula. It’s funny how the universe works, and how fast your world can change without you even realizing it. Happy one year anniversary, Giulio. Te quiero más que ayer pero menos que mañana ❤️
Since moving to Lyttelton I’ve noticed quite a f Since moving to Lyttelton I’ve noticed quite a few kereru around the Banks Peninsula and even in Christchurch ❤️ When my mom visited me during the summer, we saw two of these chubby New Zealand wood pigeons at the botanic gardens in the city center. It makes me so happy to see our native birds so close to home. Finger crossed more and more begin returning too #birdnerd . #kereru #newzealand #birds #nzmustdo
Your Uber is here ❄️ it’s been way too long Your Uber is here ❄️ it’s been way too long since I’ve been up in the mountains here in New Zealand. Time to plan another snowy adventure now that winter is here. Any suggestions? . #newzealand #nzmustdo #foxglacier
#DeBeersGroupPartner - As the world comes to grip #DeBeersGroupPartner - As the world comes to grip with the new normal, my mind can’t help but drift towards the animal kingdom. I worry what will happen to the endangered wildlife initiatives I support. Between the drop in tourism and government funding and private philanthropic efforts diverted towards healthcare, who is left looking after our most threatened creatures on the planet? It’s never been more important to not lose sight of the conservation milestones we have achieved. . I was stoked to recently hear from @debeersgroup that they're continuing to commit to their conservation work in Africa, including through the @movinggiants initiative, my favorite of their Building Forever efforts. Moving Giants is a De Beers Group collaboration translocating hundreds of elephants 1,000 miles across Africa. . De Beers Group's VLNR (Venetia Limpopo Nature Reserve) in South Africa has an overpopulation of elephants - what a problem to have! As you can imagine, too many elephants aren't good for the rest of the ecosystem. In contrast, Zinave National Park in Mozambique lost much of its wildlife as a result of civil war in the 80’s. So what if excess elephants from SA, could be rehomed in Mozambique? . Luckily De Beers Group was up for the challenge and has invested millions in funding anti-poaching efforts and translocating the elephants from the VLNR to Zinave, with great success - 101 elephants have arrived at their new home, and some already have babies! With plans to move more of these magnificent creatures once restrictions ease next year, it’s powerful to see a big company show up and make a real difference towards protecting the wildlife we cherish. . De Beers Group and I share the core belief of protecting the natural world we’ve benefited from – in order to recover nature’s treasure, it has to treasure nature. Who could have ever guessed that the natural diamonds buried deep beneath the red earth elephants tread on, would help save them? . #ad #buildingforever
HOME. . I’ve always found it a bit ironic that I HOME. . I’ve always found it a bit ironic that I’m such a total homebody when travel is my jam. I love being home just as much as I love being a nomad on the road. In fact, I reckon I value have a safe, cozy, enveloping space at home because I travel so much. Travel is loud, jarring, chaotic, and often a full sensory overload. And when you travel as much as I did, having a place to unwind in peace becomes really important. So here’s a glimpse of my nest, my snug little corner of New Zealand. Here is where I relax, curl up with my books and my puppy, reflect and dream ❤️ . #home #office #wilsonanddorset #lyttelton #newzealand
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Who is Young Adventuress?

Hi, I'm Liz, and I got my first taste for traveling when I was 16 years old. On my own, 12 years and 50 something countries later, my wanderlust has only grown and the list of countries I want to visit longer. After living in Spain for the past few years and returning home for a stint, I then quit my job and moved to New Zealand and I've been here ever since. Follow my misadventures as I wander, eat, and photograph my way around the world

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